Method of disintegrating material



Nov. 19, 1935. G. c; PIERCE METHOD 0F DISINTEGRATING MATERIAL Filed Jan, s1. 193s 5 sheets-sheet 1 N VEN T EL Nov. 19, 1935.

G. c. PIERCE 2,021,376

METHOD OF DISINTEGRATING MATERIAL 5 Sheets-Sheet Filed Jan. 5l, 1933 ZT T URN'EY:

Nov. 19, 1935. G. PIERCE 2,021,376

METHOD OF DISINTEGHATING MATERIAL Filed Jan, 31, 1955 5 sheets-sheet 5 JNVENTUL ZEEPJEJz/L'E E Nov. 19, 1935. G. c. PIERCE v METHOD OF DISINTEGRATING MATERIAL Filed Jan. 51, 195:5 5 shams-sheet l4 TT UHNEJ;

G. c. PIERCE 2,021,376

METHOD OE DISITEGRATING MATERIAL Nov. 19, 1935.

Filed Jan. 51. 1933 5 'sheets-sheet 5 .HM um f6@ 15./ ha

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Patented Nov. 19, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD oF DTsmTEGnA'rmG Guy C. Pierce, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Elia L. Pierce, Los Angeles, Calif.

Appueaun January s1, 1933, serial No.

Claims.

This invention relates to disintegrating appaaratus and has for an object the provision of a novel type of machine for breaking relatively frangible material, such as diatomaceous earth or 5 decolorizing clay, into granules or particles the size of which makes them suitable for the par- Amore detailed object in this connection is to provide a machine for disintegrating material of the general characterindicated employing'disintegrating rollers which operate similarly to those described in my aforesaid co-pending application, but in which machine the increased output capacity is attained through the expedient of forcing or crowding a greater quantity of the material to be disintegrated to and between the rolls, the effect being to compress the material and therebroken down are composed of very fran'gib'le ma teriaLthe structural formation of which is of the most delicate nature, only an absolute minimum quantity of impalpably fine particles will be machine being in the form of definite granular particles the structural formation of which is re- -tained after disintegration. This is a fatire'of particularadvantage when dealing with such materials as diatomaceousv earth, inasmuch as when lthis'material is disintegrated by the machine and/or according to the method of the present f invention, the original diatomic'Y structures of which'each particle of the material is composed 54,5 arein large measure retained mwst and of by increase the density of the mass thereof by desired size is reintroducedto the system produced, the major quantity of the output of the.

the small particlesinto which the material is broken presents a great profusion of such structures protruding from the surface thereof, and vthese structures which I am able to retain protruding in this manner are of such greatly in-v 5" creased length that they increase to a very great degree the utility of the material as a ltering medium, as will be explained hereinbelow.

Another object is to provide means forming a suitable Ysupport for the conveyor belt whereon 10 the material is fed to the disintegrating rolls so as to compensate for. the weight of the belt'and of the material carried thereby.

Still another object is to provide means for retaining the material to be disintegrated in op`15 erative relation to the feeding belt and also to the belt which cooperates therewith to produce the pre-compacting of the material, thereby overcoming the tendency for a Aportion of the material l to be forced from between the belts as the a'ction 20 of compacting progresses.

A further object is to provide a plurality of disintegrating machines, each of which embodies the improvements heretofore mentioned and which are arranged in series relation so that the ,25

material being disintegratedpasses through the several machines successively. The machines are so adjusted that each disintegrates to a finer degree than the preceding machines, the result being that the entire process of disintegration lproceeds gradually in a series of successive steps.

A still further object in this connection is to Y provide screening mechanism interposed prefer-v ably between eachof the several stagesof' disintegration and so associated therewith` that all the 35. particles smaller than those which the next suecessive stage is intended to operate upon, are removed from the'syste'm, sorted, and each of the sorted sizes of particles larger than the smallest at the 40 proper point to cause them to be mixed only with particles of substantially the sameosize as themselves.

Another object of the present invention is the Aprovision of a distintegrating apparatus which possessesv advantages in points of emciency and durability, is inexpensive to manufacture and at the same time is simple in construction and operation.

The invention possesses other objects and advantageous features, some of which, with those enumerated, will be set forth in the following description of the inventions particular embodiments which are illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming a pm or tnegspeemation. The form of construction herein disclosed has in actual use proven to be very emcient, capable of facile and rapid operation and generally desirable in other respects. For these reasons the details herein disclosed may be considered as preferred. It should be mentioned, however, that while these details will hereinafter be specifically described, variations may be effected within the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure l is a diagrammatic representation of a battery of disintegrating machines embodying the principles of the present invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged view in side elevation of one of the disintegrating machines, a portion of the figure beine broken away the better to revealcertain' portions of ythe operating mechanism;

Figure 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken substantially upon the line 3--3 of Fig. 2 with the direction of view as indicated;

Figure 4 is an enlarged transverse vertical sectional view taken substantially upon the line 4 4 of Fig. 2, portions of the gure being broken away to reduce its size;

Figure 5 is a highly enlarged detailv view in transverse vertical section, the plane of section being indicated by the lineS-S of Fig. 2, with the direction of view as indicated by the arrows;

- this figure, a portion of which is broken away to reduce its size, illustrates the means for supporting the conveying belt by imposing lateral tension thereupon; J

Figure 6 is an other transverse sectional view i Figure 9 is an enlarggd detail view showing the means for adjusting the relatively light pressure exerted by the compacting or compressing rollers;

Figure 10 is an enlarged diagrammatic view indicating the action of the compressing rollers and belt upon the lump material prior to its being operated upon by the disintegrating rolls;

Figures 11, 12, and 13 are also diagrammatic Vviews indicating the action of the disintegrating rolls of successive stages of the apparatus. in pilarating upon successively smaller sizes of parc es.

'Ihe methods and apparatus now commonly employed for the commercial disintegration of such materials as diatomaceous earth, decolorizing clays, and the like, are deficient in that they involve the disintegration of the material to particles of such extremely small size that it is reduced to an impalpable powder. practice no attempt whatsoever is made to pre--A serve the structural formation of the material.

For example, in disintegrating diatomaceous earth according to' the methods now in common use, thev most valuable'feature of the material is completely destroyed.y Diatomiteis composed of skeletons of microscopic plants whichl have become siliciiied and compressed into a compact mass Bybeing subjected vto tremendous sub- In common aqueous and/or subterranean pressures for long periods of time. One of the principal uses to which diatomaceous earth is put is that of filtrafine particles that the voids or interstices therebetween are smaller than the particles to be l- 15 tered out. However, when acting under this assumption, the most valuable feature of the diatomite as a filter medium has been overlooked and completely destroyed. This feature is the microscopically ne diatomic structures, toward the preservation of which no attempt is made in the disintegration processes now commonly employed. However, I have found that if .the structural formation of diatomite is preserved, the filtering qualities of the material are greatly '25 improved. This capability of disintegrated diatomite having its diatomic structures retained intact or substantially so, to filter out exceedingly fine suspended matter,x is in all probability due to the fact that the diatomic structuresl and/or fragments thereof which protrude from the body portions of the granules become entangled, i. e., interlaced, with like structures which protrude from adjacent bodies, thus forming a. lace-like superscreen whichpresents exceedingly fine foramina through which liquid can flow, whereas the solid bodies suspended in the liquid cannot. Consequently, if the structural Iformation of the diatomite can be preserved during the disintegration process, there 40 is no necessity of disintegrating the material to such a finely divided state in order to enable it to entrap very ne solid particles suspended in liquid filtered therethrough. In fact, I have been able by using material prepared in accordance with the method of the present invention, to filter dyes out of liquids and suspended carbon out of oil, even though the diatomaceous earth employed was in the form of granules much larger than anything previously considered adaptable to such use.

One of the advantages of using a filtering medium composed of large instead of small particles is that the filter bed is much more open, owingv to the larger interstices between particles, thereby permitting a much more rapid rate of flow through the filter. bed. diminishing theamount ofl pressure required to force the liquid lthrough the lter bed, and greatly increasing the length -of time during which a filter bed can be used before it becomes so clogged as to` be unfit for further use.

However, even had the desirability of relatively large granules as contrasted with the impalpably s mall sizes commonly used, been appreciated in 66 the industry, such material would not have been available for use for the reason that the very nature of the diatomite has precluded its disin tegration, when using the only methods common- Aly known, without actually pulverizing at least 70 the major portion to an impalpab'e powder. This is due to the-extreme frangibility of diatomite, which causes it .to shatter when it is struck (as in the cor. /entional hammerjfmill and ycyclone separators which are commonly used in its dlsintiiied hereinabove, make it possible commercially to disintegrate diatomacecus earth and similarv materials in such a manner that a large portion of the product is in granular sizes, ranging from 30 mesh to 150 mesh, and retain, furthermore, a large proportion of the structural formation of the material, thus preserving at least some of the highly desirable qualities of the material as a fil'- tering medium, as has been discussed hereinabove. As heretofore stated, the present invention provides a method and apparatus which represent an improvement over the subject matter of the said co-pending application. Substantially lthe same general'principle of disintegration is resorted to, i. e., the pieces of material which are to be broken down to smaller size have pressure applied thereto in highly localized areas by passing between rollers of very small diameter. Moreover, the pressure exerted by the rollers'against the pieces is accurately regulated as determined by the crushing strength of each type of material being operated upon; and byv permitting each stage of disintegration to be supplied with particles all of which are of substantially, uniform` size, pulverization of the material to very small size of particles is.l greatly reduced. The present invention, however, improves the quality of the output of the apparatus as wellas the quantity thereof by overcoming certain limitations of the apparatus disclosed in my said co-pending ap-n disintegrating machines i1, I8, I9, etc., arranged in series,`i. Ae., a portion of the product of each machine except the last of the battery I6 is delivered, either directly or otherwise, to the next successive machine, there to be disintegrated furate stage of the'clisintegrating apparatus. This ther. Only the coarsest portion 'of the product of each machine, however, is passed vto the next successive machine, the smaller portions being separated out therefrom by screening devices 2l,A 22, etc., interposed between each 'two adjacent".

disintegrating machines. These smaller particles are sorted in the screening devices 2|, 22, as by screens 24', 26, 21, and each size is conducted either to a suitable storage bin (not shown) or directly to the disintegrating machine I8', I8, 'as the casev might be, to which particles of that same size are being fed. vFigure 1 illustrates diagrammatically conveyor belts 28, 29, 3i, and 32fieading from the screening devices 2I,'22, so as to con-v duct the various sorted sizes of particles eitherv to the appropriate storage bin or to the approprisorting lof the product of, each of thev machines I1, I8, etc., insures thateach of the several machines, I8, I9, etc., of the-battery I6 operates only upon particles or lumps which are all o f substantially a'uniform size. v

` Moreover, since each step of disintegration will produce a wide range of sizes of particles, some of which are as small as it is desirable to produce, and only a small portion of which are so large as to require their being passed through the next successive stage of disintegration, the preferable arrangement is to lprovidefor each machine I8 handling the smallest size of particles, va greater number, say two, of the machines I8 handling the nex't larger size, a still greater number, say four, of the machines I1 handling the next larger size, and so on, the number of machines in each stage of disintegration being regulated so that their combined products when screened to remove all save the largest particles will supply a suiiicient quantity of material to keep the machines in the next stage operating substantially at capacity; Thus it may be understood that by so adjusting the machines of the entire series I6 that those of each stage disintegrate to a ner degree than those of the preceding stage, the most economical operating conditions will obtain. It should be explaned, furthermore, that whereas I have illustrated but three stages of disintegration in the battery I6, as many more may be employed as any particular set of operating conditions 'may require. For example, dierent species of diatomite require a more gradual disintegration than others, thus necessitating a greater number of Astages with a lesser degree .of differentiation in the adjustment between machines of adjacent stages. Variation in the moisture content is another factor which has influence upon the vnurnber of stages of disintegration required in order to obtain the best results.

' However, the principal means for increasing the quantity ofmaterial disintegrated lies in the construction of each of the several machines of the battery I6 instead of in their relative arrangement, and since in the preferred embodiment they all are of substantially identical construction dif- 'fering from each vother only in the matter of adjustment, it will suilice for the purpose of the present disclosure to describe but one of them,

v Asay the machine I8.

This disintegrating machine I8 comprises a pair of spaced sidewalls 36 disposed in parallel arrangement and mounted rigidly by any suitable anchoring device such as Yangle irons 31 upon a supporting structure 38. A conveyor belt 39 extends Alongitudinally of 'the machine I8, being mounted upon rollers 4I and 42 which extend between the two sidewalls 35 and which are revolubly mounted therein as by means of antifriction bearings 43 engaging the shaft 44 which carries each-of the rollers 4I, 42. Preferably the l""anti--friction rollers 44 for the shaft 43 oi' one of the rollers, say the; roller 42, are carried by blocks 46 which, instead of being rigidly mounted on the-sidewalls 36 are-slidablyadjustable by beto be disintegrated to and between the rolls 5| vand 52, which perform the actual disintegration.

The disintegrating roils 5I and 52 which may be composed of rigid material, suchy as metal,

or of resilientmaterial such as rubber, or a composition of rubber' and fabric, depending upon `the particular type of materialto be disintegrated,

are carried by hafts 53 and 5 4`respectively, which ing carried in suitable trackways`41 and are proy vided with means for adjusting, such as a screw 48 rotatably mounted in the trackway 41 and engaging a nut 49 carried by the block 46, such in turn are journaled in sidewalls 36 through the expedient of suitable anti-friction bearings 56 and 51 respectively.` The disintegrating rolls 5| and 52 are disposed one above the other with the lower` of the two, i. e., the roll 5I, in such position that the upperirun 58 of the conveyor belt 39.just touches the uppermost portion of the roll 5|, so as to extend tangentially thereacross.

It will be observed that the disintegrating roll 5| is disposed between the rollers 4| and 42 and is closer to the roller 4| which is at-the discharge end of the machine. This causes the material which passes between the disintegrating rollers 5| and 52 to continue on in horizontal movement upon the upper run 58 of the belt 39 after having passed between the disintegrating rolls and before it is dropped from the conveyor belt `39.

A pre-compacting belt 6| is disposed above the conveyor belt 39 and is so arranged that the lower run 62 of the belt 6I converges with the upper run 58 of the conveyor belt 39, as clearly shown upon Figures 1 and 2. 4This pre-compacting belt is under tension between the upper disintegrating roll 52 and an idler roll 63 carried a block 66 which is adjustable longitudinally of the machine I8 on a trackway 61 and is provided with an adjusting screw and nut 68 and 69 respectively. This mechanism permits imposing the desired degree of longitudinal tension upon the compacting or compressing belt 6|. Thecompacting belt 6I is provided with preferably a plurality of cornpacting rollers v1I and 12, which extend y transversely across the machine I8 in contact with the upper surface of the lower run 62 of the Vbelt 6|. These rollers' 1I and 12 are disposed nearer the-lower end of the belt 6| but4 are spaced slightly fromeach other and from the roller 52 about which the lower end of the belt 6| extends. Each of the compacting rolls 1| and 12 is pressed downwards against the run 62 of the belt 6| as by a coil'spring 13 (see Figure 9) associated with each end of each roll 1 I, 12. Each of these springs 13 is under compression between an adjusting screw 14 and a block 16 within which is journaled the associated end of the shaft 11which carries the associated compacting 'roll 1| or 12, as the case might be. However, inasmuch as it is desired that only a relatively gentle force be exerted by the compacting rolls 1| and 12, each of the springs 13 is of relatively light construction.

the machine |8 is of considerablewidth, say to accommodate a belt 8 feet wide, as is contemplated in machines intended to produce large commercial quantities of disintegrated diatomite.

It is for the purpose of avoiding suchilexure,A

which would interfere seriously with the satisfactory operation of the machine, that the reinforcing rolls 8|, 82, are provided. Consequently each of these reinforcing rolls 8| and 82 is of considerably greater diameter than the shearing roll 5|, 52, with which it is associated. The rolls 8| and 82 are carried by shafts, 84, respectively, which are journaled in anti-friction bearings 86 and 81'respectively.

- inwards with respect to 'the belt 39 and toward the shoulder |83 similarly defined by the inner face Inasmuch as alloi.v me rolls 8|, 82,- 8-I, and 8.2 are arrangedwith their axes in a vertical plane, a convenient arrangement is to provide a single, vertically elongated housing 88 upon each sidewall 36 of the machine I8 to accommodate all four bearings 56, Y|51, 86, and 81, which are disposed on tha 5 sidewall. A

Preferably the upper disintegrating roll 52 is pressed downwards toward the lower disintegrating roll 6| so as to resisttheir separation, with a predetermined degree of force. This is ac- 10 complished through the expedient of a coil spring 89 disposed within the upper end of each of the bearing housings 88 and compressed between an adjusting screw 9| and the uppermost bearing 84 within that housing 88. However, inasmuch as it l5 is desirable to limit the'approach of the roll 52 i toward the roll 5| to a predetermined minimum distance, a spacing block 92 of appropriate thickness is interposed between the bearings 56 andv -51 within each of the housings 88. Preferably 20 the springs 89 are of considerablyA heavier construction than the springs 18, for the reason that itis desirable to resist separation of the shearing or disintegrating rolls 5I and 52 with a considerably greater force than that which resists up- 25 ward motion of the compacting rolls 1| and 12.

Inasmuch as the upper belt 6| extends around the upper disintegrating roll 52, it is an entirely satisfactory construction to provide space for the compacting rolls 1| and 12 merely by using an 30 idler roller 63 which is of greater diameter than the roll 62 upon which the lower lend of the belt 6I is engaged. However, the lower belt 39 isso arranged that it extends beyond the lower disintegrating roll 5| beforereturning to the idler roll 35 42 at the opposite end of the belt. Accordingly it is necessary to provide space between the upper .and lower runs 58 and 94 respectively of the belt 39 to accommodatenot only the shearing rolls 5| and the backing -rolls 96 and 81 which are disposed 40 below the upper run 68 and directly opposed to -the compacting rolls 1| and 12 respectively, in

lwhich includes the axes of the rolls 4| and 42, as

clearly indicated uponFigure 2. 50

` Owing to the relatively greatwidth of conveyor belt 38 which is contemplated in machines capable of handling relatively great quantities of material, I have found it desirable to provide means for imposinglateral tension upon it, so as tocom- 55 pensate for the weight of the material carried thereby which might otherwise cause too extensive Ssging thereof. For this purpose, each lateral edge of the conveyor belt 3,8 is provided with a flexible strip I8I upon each surface thereof (see 60 Figures 4 and 5). These strips |0I are fastened to the belt 38 as by rivets |I|2 extending through the belt and through both strips ||l|, and owing to their flexibility permit fiexure of the belt 39 around the rolls 4|, 42, and 98 without interference. However, owing to the fact that the inner face |83 of each strip |8I lies substantially at right angles with the belt 38, a continuous abutment or shoulder is provided thereby which faces |83 of the corresponding strip I8| associated with the opposite edge of the belt 39.

Preferably ateach of several points betweenthe mus u and 4: each sidewau ze is provideawah 75 vacetate the associated edge of the belt 39. Each of these pins |06, |01, is journaled in a suitable anti-friction bearing |08 mounted upon the associated sidewall 36 as by a bearing block |09. Upon the inner end of each pin |06, |01, a head v| is provided, which on account of its greater diameter than the pin by which it is carried, extends partway across the face |03 which is presented by the.

inner edge of the associated strip |0|. Thus it may be seen that each of the revolubly mounted pins |06, |01 and the head carried thereby co-operate to provide a roller which is a'dapted to engage the inside face of each strip I0| so as to resist any tendency for the associated lateral edge of the belt 39 to move inwards towards the other edge of the belt, this being the motion of the lateral edges of the belt which would be produced if the belt were to sag.

Any suitable means may be provided for driving the disintegrating rous 5| and 52 and causing the opposed belts 6| and 39 to move in such a manner that their proximal runs 62 and 58 respectivelyy move in the direction in which they converge, i. e., to the right as viewed upon Figs. 1 and 2. One convenient type of mechanism for driving the machine comprises any suitable prime mover, .such as electric motor ||6 mounted upon a bracket ||1 on one of the sidewalls 36 and carrying a sprocket -that they be interconnected by some positive driving means such as gears |3| and |32 carried by extensions |33 and |34 of the shafts 53 and" 54 respectively of the rolls 5| and 52' respectively. It 'should be explained that the maximum separation of the roll 5| and 52 against the action of the springs 89 will, under all normal operating conditions, be less than that which will be necessary to cause the teeth of the gears |3| and |32 to become disengaged.

Inasmuch as the upper or compacting belt 6| extends around the upper"`disintegratin`g roll 52. the rotation of this roll 52 will impart the desired m'otion to the compacti'ng belt 6|.' However, the only contact which the lower disintegrating roll 5| makes with the conveyor belt 39 is that which results from the mere tangential engagement of of the shaft 56 of the lower disintegrating roll 5|. This pulley |42 is connected as by a belt |44 with another pulley |45 rigid with an extension |46 of the shaft |41 which carries the rolls 4| around which the belt 39 extends. Although the rolls |42 and 4| are ofditlerent diameter, this may be'compensated for by selecting pulleys |42 and |45 of appropriate size. It is desirable that the belt |44 be relatively loose andpreferably rela- |63 (see Figure 10), which corresponds substansired.

tively narrow, so as to permit it to slip when force in excess of a predetermined value resists movement .of the belt 39. Preferably the tension of the belt, |44 is adjustable, for which purpose an idler pulley |48 is rotatively mounted in position 5 to engage one of the runs of the belt |44. This idler pulley |48 is journaled in a block |49, the position of which is determined by an adjusting screw |5|.

I prefer that each of the disintegrating machines be provided with means for collecting any material which may adhere to the belt 39 after it has passed around the roller 4| and drop from the lower run 94 of the belt 39. This may be in the form of a collector |56, the sidewalls |51 of 15 which incline downwards and inwards so as to deposit any material falling thereupon upon a conveyor belt |58, which is disposed below a longitudinally extending opening |59 in the collector |56.

The material to be disintegrated is deposited upon the upper run 58 of the conveyor belt 39 of the rst disintegrating machine |1 of the lbattery I6, or upon that run of the conveyor belt 39 of each of the disintegrating machines in the 25 rst stage, in the event that there be more than one machine, as explained hereinabove. Figure 1 illustrates diagrammatically a hopper |6| having a restricted mouth |62 whereby material in' suitable lump size, say of approximately one- 80 quarter in h diameter is deposited upon the conveyor belt 39 of the first machine |1; The preferable arrangement is such that the material thus`4l deposited is disposed in a relatively smooth layer 85 tially in thickness to the spacing between the runs 62 and 58 of the belts 6| and39 respectively at the pointwhere the first compacting roller 12 engages the upper belt 6|. This` may be accomplished by the precise arrangement of the mouth |62 of the hopper |6|, and/or by means of au leveling device or spreader |66, which is illustrated upon Figure 7 in conjunction'with a slightly modified form of conveyor belt 39', which will be described hereinafter. Thisv leveling device |66 comprises a blade 61 extending transversely 'of the belt 39 or 39 as the case might be and supported by means of a rod |68 the ends of .which are rotatably mounted in the sidewalls 36 erably only the ends |69 of the blade |61 are connected to the rod |66, Whereas the central portion |1| is positioned considerably more closely to the first compacting roll 12, the result being that the bladev |61 is substantially V-shaped,Y in plan. When the material (to be disintegrated is v deposited upon the belt39 or 39', as the fcase 60 might be, in a layer the thickness of which is in excess of that which is desired, as explained hereinabove, the blade |61 tends to level or smooth the layer by crowding all such' excess material 1 toward the center, causing any hollows in the upper surface ofthe layer to be filled as will readily be understood. Since the rod |68 is rotatably mounted in the sidewalls 36, the blade |61 may be elevated out of operating positionwhen de- 70 Operation The disintegrating appratus of the present invention is intended to operate upon material which is in lumps of from approximately one`- yand 52.

quarter to one-half inch in size, although it should be understood that by suitable modification of the hereinabove described apparatus different sizes of lumps may be disintegrated satisfactorily. The lumps to be disintegrated are deposited upon the belt 39'as by the mouth |62 of the hopper |6|, and since' the belt 39 is in motion due to the inter-engagement of the pulley 4| around which the belt 39 extends and the pulley |42 carried by the lower disintegratlng roll 5 I', the material deposited upon the belt 39 will be carried toward the opposed disintegrating rolls 5| As mentioned hereinabove, the mouth |62 and the leveling device |66, if such be employed, are so arranged that the material to be .disintegrated is deposited in a layer the thickness of which substantially coincides to the spacing between the opposed belts 6| and 39, where they intersect the vertical plane which includes the axis of the rst compacting roll 1|.v Owing to the irregular configuration of the many lumps constituting the mass ofmaterial, and owing to the relatively recent agitation thereof resulting from its having been tumbledonto the belt from the bin |6|, the material so deposited upon, the

belt 39 and carried toward the disintegrating rolls will be relatively loosely compacted, the result being that the voids or interstices |9| between the lumps |82 l(see Fig. 10) will in most instances aggregate about as nruch volume as the total volume of the lumps themselves. The function o f the compacting belt 6| and the compacting rollers 1| and 12 is to overcome this condition and cause the mass of lumps |92 to be more closely compacted, i. e., crowd the lumps |92 more closely together, before they pass between the disintegrating rolls 5| 'and 52. This result is attained through the convergency of the belts 6| and 39 because after the material passes between the flrstcompacting roll 12 and the backing roll 91 associated therewith, a limited amount of pressure is brought to bear thereupon. The stages of compacting, however, are not abrupt, but are gradual and merge one into the other owing to the. interconnection of the rolls 12, 1| and 52 by the l/ower run 62 of the compacting belt 6| whiclris' moving to the right, as viewed upon Figure 10. Thus it may be seen that as the layer |63 approaches the disintegrating rolls 5| and 52, the density thereof is gradually increased and reaches its maximum just at the position where the layer |63 enters between the disintegrating rolls 5| and 52. Very littleif any actual break-` ing of the lumps |82 will occur until they actually enter between the disintegrating rolls 5| and 52, owing to the relatively light pressure with which the compacting rolls 1| and 12 are pressed down-l wards.

This accounts for the principal vdifference between the respective manners of operation of the device of my aforesaid copending application and I 4er before it enters between the disintegrating rolls, the particlesl are prevented from slipping ment toward each other.

ing through the expedient of the spacing blocks 92; and Figure 10 indicates the manner in which the disintegrating rolls act upon each particle |82 as the result of this limitation in their move- It will be observed that a large' number of cracks or planes of severance |9| have developed in the lump |92 which is actually engaged betweenthe rolls. Owing to the sharp curvature of the smalll rolls they press their respective belts against the lump |92 in vrelatively small areas of contact, causing the force which they exert against the lump to be highly localized; and since the material is of such a brittle nature, the cracks |9| are formed therein in a shearing action separating the lump into a plu' rality of smaller lumps. However, as the lump |92 is disintegrated in this manner, the smaller particles |93 thus produced are not crushed because of the fact that the disintegrating roll 52 cannot move closer to the opposed roll 5|. Instead the sheared or cracked lump |92 simply falls apart with relatively little grinding or sliding will in most cases consist of several lumps super-v imposed one upon the other as it passes between the disintegrating rolls 5| and ."i2.4 However, the action in shearing each of the several lumps |92 will be substantially the same as described, owing to the fact that the layer |62 has been pre-compacted, the result of which is to hold the lumps |92 firmly against slipping one against the other as they enter between the disintegrating rolls. Such action would tend to wipe oil'. any protruding structures, but instead of slipping past each "other in this manner they are prevented from doing so by having been pre-compacted, so that when the nal pressure is brought to bear against the layer it will cause each of the superimposed lparticles to press against each other in highly localized areas (owing to the irregular configuration of the particles) until thesame shearing action takes place.I Immediately this has occurred the pressure exerted against the particles will be relieved, thus precluding the possibility of any crushing and permitting the particles merely to fall apart withut detriment to the diatomic 35 structures which protrude from the newly formed surfaces thereof'.

The reinforcing rolls 9| and 32 serve to prevent anyflexure \of the relatively small disintegrati'ng rolls 5| and 52 which, owing to their relatively great length in' a dislntegrating machine designed to operate upon commercial quantities of material, would in all probability be caused to bend .apart between their respective bearings and thus destroy their alignment; The reinforcing rolls 15 gagement of the heads of the pins |06 and l |01 with the innerfaces |03 of the strips |0|.

, These strips serve an additional purpose, however, in some of the latter stages of disintegration, where the separation between the disiintegrating rolls 5| and 52 is so slight that the lower end of the upper belt actually enters the space between the strips lul on the upper surface of the lower belt 39, as shown upon Figure 4. In these latter stages oi disintegration, the particles being conducted past the compacting rolls and the disintegrating rolls are so iine that the mass of material is possessed of a considerable degree of iiuidity and consequently has a great tendency to be squeezed out from between the converging belts. This tendency is overcome by the strips |0| upon each side edge of the lower belt and extending upwards past the lower run of the upper belt at the place where the greatest degree of compacting and the actual disintegrating take place.

Whereas the battery I6 illustrated upon Figure l 1 contains but three stages of disintegration,

Figures 10, 11,` 12, and 13 illustrate four successive stages, it being understood that as many stages i of disintegrating may be employed as-may be necessary in the case of any particular material.

However, instead of passing directly from one stage (say that illustrated in Fig. 10) to the next stage |96 .(say that illustrated in Fig. 11), the stream |91 of particles |93 of mixed sizes is screened as' by the screening apparatus 2| after it issues from the distintegrating rolls 5| and 52 of the iirst stage, and only the largest particles |90 of the stream |91 are conveyed to the disintegrating rolls 5| and 52 of the next stage |96. However, the pre-compacting of these lumps or particles |98 occurs in identically the same manner as in the case of the first stage, so that the density of the layer |99 of particles |99 entering between the disintegrating rolls ofthe second stage is increased to such an extent that slipping of the particles one on the other cannot occur as the planes 20| of shear develop. In this manner the particles |98 constituting the layer |99 entering the second stage are further reduced in size, producing a stream 202 of particles of mixed size. This stream 202 is again screened and only the largest particles 203 are permitted to enter between the disintegrating rolls of the next successive stage 204 (see Fig. 12), where identically the same process oi disintegration occurs, where the largest particles 206 which have issued from lthe second stage |92 are further reduced in size to a'stream 201 of"p'aticles of fmixed size, which are again screened so as to permit only the largest particles 208 thereof to be passed to the' disintegrating rolls of the next Y stage 209 (see Fig. 13), and so on. 'I'he process of disintegration continues on in this manner until all the stages of disintegration have been completed.

It willy be observed, however, that the disinv tegrating rollers of thes'uccessive stages are ad justed so that the disintegrating rolls of each stage are disposed more closely together than g those of the preceding stage, thereby making it vpossible for each stage to disintegrate toga finer degree than the preceding stage.

As stated hereinabove, each of the screeningl 5 operations between successive stages of disinte' gration removes all the particles which are small-y er than those which are to be operated upon by the next successive stage. These smaller partlcles are sorted, as by the screens 2|, 26,and ,21, and each of the several sizes is'transported by the appropriate conveyor belt 28, 29, 3|, or 32 to a suitable storage bin, or is reintroduced into the -battery I6 at such point that those particles are mixed with others of substantially the same size. l5

The segregation of the particles into the several diilerent sizes so that each stage of disintegray tion operates upon only one size of particlevis another important featureof the apparatus of the present invention, inasmuch as it avoids-the 20 tendency Voi? the larger particles to" grind or crush the smaller particles to an impalpable powder, as would be the case were a mixture of the sizes to be fed through any one ofthe stages of disintegration.

As stated hereinabove the conventional meth` ods of disintegrating diatomaceous earth cause in excess of 95% of the material, to be reduced to such a ne powder that it passes through a 200 mesh screen. -Not only this, but they also completely destroy the structural formation of the material; i. e., the silicified diator'ne skeletons, which I have found to be of such extreme value when the material isl used for filtration purposes. Y

Actual application of the principles of disintegration described hereinabove has made it possible to disintegrate diatomaceous earth into graded sizes ranging from 20 mesh to 150 mesh with less than 10% of the total quantity of material reducedto impalpable powder. Furthermore, of these mesh sizes of disintegrated diatomaceous earth it has been' found by actual observation under the microscope that at least 85% carry a great profusion of diatomic structures which protrude from the body portions of the particles, and moreover that in most cases these protruding structures are of much greater length than I had been able to produce by the apparatus disclosed in my aforesaid co-pending application.' 50 I attribute this `improvement in the quality of the product of the apparatus at least partially to the fact that the lumps or particles to be reduced in size are compacted before being actually disintegrated, thereby preventing slipping between the particles and producing new surfaces by shearing, as the particles are broken into smaller particles,l which are not permitted to rub or grind against each other to the detriment of the structures protruding from such newly formed V duced because of the fact that contact of any of the particles with either of the belts will probably tend to break oi at least some1 of the structures which protrude from the surface of that particle, which makes ,contact with the belt.

"Ihus it may be seen that by increasing the thickness of the layer the number of particles which iice it for the purpose of the present disclosure do not make contact with the belt and yet which are disintegrated in the highly desirable shearing `action of one particle against another, is increased, whereas ,the number of particles which do make contact with the belt is not materially increased, and thus the proportionate number of particles which have their protruding structures preserved is greatly increased.

'I'he precise degree of separation of the disintegrating rolls l and 52 in each stage is a detail of adjustment to which' particular attention should be paid in order to insure the most satisfactory operation of the machine. A It is( desirableto pass the material through the disintegrating rollers in as thick a layer as possible, not only becausethe quantity vof material acted upon is in this manner increased, but because the smallest percentage of impalpable sizes is produced when the layer is of maximum thickness, and more and longer protruding structures are preserved upon the particles. This is true, however, only up to a certain point, for I have found that by exceeding a certain thickness of layer almost all -the material is reduced to an impalpable powder, and practically all the diatomic structures are destroyed. Moreover, the maxi'- mum thickness of layer is not a constant factor, but varies with each type ofdiatomite or other material` being disintegrated, the result being that the proper adjustment of the shearing rolls 5I and 52 in each stage nf disintegration and for cach class of material should be predetermined, and the several machines then adjusted accord-i ingly, in order to obtain the most satisfactory results.V After determining 'the most ldesirable thickness for the mass or la; er of material passing between the shearing rolls, it then remains to ascertain how thickly the loosely compacted material should be spread uponthe feeding belt. 'I'he most desirable thickness is that which will result in such a degree of compacting of the mass of material by the compacting rolls 'Il and 12, that the maximum force exerted is just slightly less than thatwhich will cause disintegration of' the particles comprising the mass. It then remains only for the shearing rolls 5I and 52 to impose relatively slight additional force upon the material .to develop the desired shearing of the particles.

I have found that the quality of the output of the machine is so dependent upon the thickness of the layer of material ypassing between the shearing rolls 5i and 52 and upon the degree of compacting thereof prior to the entry between the shearing rolls, that it is possible to control the percentage of the number of particles which carry protruding diatomic structures by varying either or both of those factors, and also to predetermine quite accurately how high a percentage of a given class of material' will carry protruding structures, yafter these two factors are known.

From the above description, it will be understood that thesincrease in volume of material dis-- integrated per unit of time as a.V result of the use of the converging belts is merely one of the incidental improvements in-the art which are attained by my present invention, the betterment far more emcient filtration which can be 'per- 1 formed by means of diatomaceous earth disinto recite that when using diatomaceous earth disintegratedv according to the methods commonly used in Vthe art, for the purpose of filtering crude oil from the Santa Fe District for the si- 5k multaneous removal of wax and carbon, it required two hours and thirty minutes for a given quantity of the crude to pass through the filter cake, and after the filtration was complete the filter cake was of a dirty yellow color, showing that practically no carbon had been removed thereby. When the same quantity of the same type of crude was filtered by means of diatoms.-

ceous earth disintegrated according to the disclosure in my aforesaid co-pending application, Serial No. 495,905, it passed through a lter cake of the same sizein twenty-two minutes and after the filtration the filter cake was absolutely black, showing that a large proportion of the carbon had been removed from the oil; ana by weighing the filter cake before and after filtration the quantity of carbon removed was ascertained. 'Ihen the same test was made, using diatomaceous earth disintegrated in accordance with the hereinabove described method, and the same quantity of the same type of oil passed through the same size of lter cake in eighteen instead of twenty-two minutes, even though it required only fifteen pounds pressure, whereas the former test, had required twenty pounds pressure to cause the oil to flow through the filter cake, and the quantity of carlon removed in the last test was found to be 4% more than in the preceding test'. This improvement in filtering capabilities of diatomite when disintegrated in accordance with the present invention can oe explained only by' the fact that more and longer protruding diatome skeletons are retained intact upon the granules into 'which the material has been disintegrated.

I have found it desirable vwhen disintegrating certain species of diatomite and other material which are comparatively hard such as certain species of decolorizing clays, to employ a modied form of conveyor belts v39' and 6| (see Figs.

6 and 7), which are the same as the belts 3l and i5 6I previously. described with the exception that their outer surfaces are armored, thereby avoiding the danger that the lumps of material will `rupture the belt when compacted and/or when belt will, un er most circumstances, be necessary only in the st stage of disintegration where the lumps to be broken are relatively large and consequently require considerably more pressure on the part of the disintegrating rolls to eect the desired shearing. Under most circumstances of operation, it is preferable' that'the shearing' rolls 65' 5|' and 52 used in conjunction with armored belts, be composed of metal or other non-resilient material. i

Another detail of construction, which may be employed with either type of belt, is also lllustrated upon Fig. '1. This is a pair ,of rotary cylindrical brushes 22 I and 222, respectively, motmted in brushing contact with the belts 0I and I! or 29', as the case might be. The engagement of the brushes with their respective belts is quite 75 light and their bristlesA are relatively soft. Their function is to-remove any of the disintegrated material which might tend to adhere to the belt after it has passed aroundv the associated pulley at the discharge end of the machine. It is not necessary to use these brushes in connection with all types of diatomite, but if the material being disintegrated is relatively moist, they are usually advantageous because a high moisture content of the material being broken down increases the tendency thereof to adhere to the belt. For this reason the brushes are quite important, inasmuch as the method and apparatus hereinabove described for disintegrating diatomaceous earth and similar material permits disintegrating material while it contains a high percentage of moisture. This is an improvement in the disintegrating art, inasmuch as other types of disintegration re quire that the material be absolutely dry, which not only makes thematerial itself more brittle and therefore much more diiilcult to disintegrate without complete pulverization, but also practically precludes the possibility of disintegrating even to a slight degree without complete destruction of the diatomic structure.

1. The method of disintegrating diatomaceous earth from particles of va given size to particles of a smaller size, each of said particles being composed of a highly compacted mass of -diatomic structures; said method comprising compressing a mass of said particles of given size to increase the density of the mass by crowding-the particles thereof more closely together by a compressing pressure less than that necessary to eiect disintegration of said particles, and then applying shearing force to4 said compacted mass whereby `the particles thereof are sheared into particles v of smaller size.

2. The method of disintegrating diatomaceous earth from particles of a given size to particles of a-smaller size, each of said particles being-composed of a highly compacted mass of diatomic structures; said method comprising compressing a mass of said particles of given size to increase the density of the mass by crowdingthe particles thereof more closely together, and then applying shearing force to said compacted mass, said shearing force being applied to said mass over a very small area thereof, whereby the shearing forces acting upon each particle are applied thereto in greatly restricted areas. 5 3. The method of disintegrating diatomaceous earth from particles of a given size to particles of a smaller size, which comprises gradually compacting a mass of said particles of given size to a predetermined degree of compression which is 10 slightly less than that which effects fracture of said particles, and then applying suilcient additional force to said compacted mass of particles to produce fracture of the particles, said additional force being applied over a relatively small 15 area of said mass and being released immediately after the particles are fractured, whereby the fracture thereof occurs in a shearing action and the smaller particles thus produced are not caused to grind one against the other. 20

4. The method of disintegrating aggregate material which comprises spreading said material in a sheet of predetermined thickness, subjecting said sheet to gradually increasing pressure to compact it to greater density by crowdingthe 25 particles of the material more closely together and then applying shearing force to said compacted material, said shearing force being applied y to said material over a very small area of saidsheet, whereby the forces acting upon each particle are applied thereto in greatly restricted areas whereby said particles are sheared into particles of smaller size.- A

5. The method of` disintegrating diatomaceous earth from particles of a given size to particles 85 of a smaller size, each of`said particles being composed of a highly compacted mass of diatomic structures; said method comprising spreading a mass of said particles ina sheet of predetermined thickness, subjecting said sheet to-gradually in- 40 creasing pressure to compress the particles more closely together, and then applying sufficient force to said compacted mass to disintegrate said' particles, said disintegrating force being applied to said mass in a highly restricted area to pro- 45 duce a shearing effect upon said particles.

. G. C. PIERCE. 

